Summer sweets will soon be o'er,
Winter comes, they bloom no more,
Finest days will soon be past,
Brightest suns will set at last.
MORNING HYMN.
Once more the light of day I see;
Lord, let me joyful raise
My heart and voice in song to thee,
Of gratitude and praise.
The busy bee, ere this, hath gone
O'er many a bud and bell,
From flower to flower is humming on,
To store its waxen cell.
Oh, may I, like the bee, contrive
Each moment to employ,
And store my mind, that richer hive,
With sweets that will not cloy.
The skylark from its lowly nest
Hath soared into the sky,
And by its joyous song expressed,
Its thanks to God on high.
My feeble voice and faltering tone
No tuneful tribute bring;
But thou canst in my heart make known, What bird can never sing.
Instruct me, too, to lift my heart
To thee in praise and prayer; And love and gratitude impart For every good I share.
Thus let me, Lord, confess the debt
I owe thee day by day;
Nor e'er at night or morn forget
To thee, O God! to pray.
Sweet robin, how I love to hear
Thy tuneful song this wintry day;
To me it is a sweeter song
Than any in the month of May.
Thy music is as charming now,
When not a flower or leaf is seen,
As when the daisies deck the fields,
And all the woods are robed in green.
Thou dost not droop thy merry wing,
Tho' thick and cold descends the snow;
And in thy song there is no pause,
Tho' loud the winds and tempests blow.
But yonder comes a raging storm,
And ruffled is thy crimson breast;
Then spread thy pinions, haste away,
And shelter in thy little nest.
But come again to-morrow morn,
And sing another song to me;
And at my window thou shalt find
A crumb or two of bread for thee.
The stars are come out in the sky overhead,
And all living creatures are going to bed;
The beast to his stall and the bird to her nest,
And I will be sleeping as well as the rest.
Poor things, I am better provided than they,
I've many more comforts by night and by day,
And I will thank God for them all, for 'tis he
That gives every comfort to them and to me.
God made me and loves me, and keeps me from And should not I love and obey him again? [pain, Then I'll try with his help to do all that is right, And I hope he will bless me and guard me to night.
THE BUTTERFLY'S BALL.
Come take up your hats, and away let us haste,
To the butterfly's ball and the grasshopper's feast;
The trumpeter gadfly has summoned his crew,
And the revels are now only waiting for you.
On the smooth shaven grass, by the side of the wood,
Beneath a broad oak that for ages has stood,
See the children of earth and the tenants of air
For an evening's amusement together repair.
And there came the beetle, so blind and so black,
Who carried the emmet, his friend, on his back;
And there was the gnat, and the dragon-fly too,
With all their relations, green, orange, and blue.
And there came the moth in his plumage of down,
And the hornet in jacket of yellow and brown,
Who with him the wasp his companion did bring,
But they promised that evening to lay by their sting.
And the sly little dormouse crept out of his hole,
And led to the feast his blind brother the mole,
And the snail, with his horns peeping out from his shell,
Came from a great distance, the length of an ell.
A mushroom their table, and on it was laid
A water-dock leaf, which a tablecloth made;
The viands were various, to each of their taste,
And the bee brought his honey to crown the repast.
There, close on his haunches so solemn and wise,
The frog from a corner looked up to the skies;
And the squirrel well pleased such diversion to see,
Sat cracking his nuts overhead in a tree.
Then out came the spider, with fingers so fine,
To show his dexterity on the tight line;
From one branch to another his cobwebs he slung,
Then as quick as an arrow he darted along.
But just in the middle, oh! shocking to tell!
From his rope in an instant poor harlequin fell;
Yet he touched not the ground, but with talons outspread,
Hung suspended in air at the end of a thread.
Then the grasshopper came with a jerk and a spring,
Very long was his leg, though but short was his wing;
He took but three leaps, and was soon out of sight,
Then chirped his own praises the rest of the night.
With step so majestic, the snail did advance,
And promised the gazers a minuet to dance;
But they all laughed so loud that he pulled in his head,
And went in his own little chamber to bed.
Then as evening gave way to the shadows of night,
Their watchman, the glowworm, came out with his light;
Then home let us hasten while yet we can see,
For no watchman is waiting for you and for me.
PETER PARLEY'S GEOGRAPHY.
The world is round, and like a ball
Seems swinging in the air;
A sky extends around it all,
And stars are shining there.
Water and land upon the face
Of this round world we see ;
The land is man's safe dwelling-place,
But ships sail on the sea.
Two mighty continents there are,
And many islands too,
And mountains, hills and valleys there
With level plains we view.
The ocean like the broad blue sky
Extends around the sphere,
While seas, and lakes, and rivers lie
Unfolded bright and clear.
Around the earth on every side,
Where hills and plains are spread,
The various tribes of men abide
White, black and copper-red.
And animals and plants there be
Of various name and form,
And in the bosom of the sea
All sorts of fishes swarm.
Geography goes high and low
To set them forth and show them,
The more attention you bestow
The better you will know them.
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